HOA CC&Rs Violation / correct process steps

Questions for all member here who feel they can provide guidance ....we are a 3 person Board (+ Architectural Committee 1 person) for a 93 property neighborhood, our CC&Rs have been in place since 1969, and have been revised and/or amended 5 times since then, but they are legally binding, filed with our county auditor and all homeowners here realize & understand our neighborhood is guided by our CC&Rs.....so, when a homeowner asks for relief from an adjacent homeowner in clear violation of the CC&Rs, our process is to send a formal letter to the offending homeowner and let them know they need to fix / correct the issue, and to formally let the board know they have .....1st question: should there be a time frame that the Board gives the offending homeowner on the initial letter? like "you have 14 days to comply" ......2nd question: if the offending homeowner does not comply, WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP ?? .....we have a "very" loose Board, been that way for decades, enforcement highly loose as well, our new board wants to tighten things up and get a bit more serious with anybody who is not complying with / in violation of our CC&Rs and how we handle it ....we do not have a attorney retained, this HOA may have at some point in the past, but not now .....that said, is Step 2: send another letter letting offending homeowner know that since you did not reply, you now have so many days to comply, or the Board will begin to assess a daily fine until you are in compliance, also mentioning that if we do have to take legal action, once settled, you (the offending homeowner) will be responsible for court costs and attorney fees once the matter is settled (the fine levy for noncompliance, and being responsible for court & attorney fees, IS called out in our CC&Rs) .....I am just trying to find out the consensus of correct & proper steps to take when we have a homeowner in violation of our CC&Rs, and moreover, we have a homeowner asking the Board for relief from the offending homeowner ....THANK YOU very much for the assist & education -

You do need to know your state's laws on this. In Cali, for instance, we must call alleged violators to hearings with 15 days notice so they can tell their side of the story.

Sometimes these steps are in Bylaws or Rules & Regs.

How much time to "cure" a violation in your intitil letter depends, it seems to me, on what it is that needs fixing. If a large project, you probably should allow more time than if minor.

I'm in a condo building though and violations here are mostly nosy partiers.

Marco

Some generalities:

There must be a published fining schedule. It does not have to list each individual offense but has to list fines. Typically $25.00 for first offense and doubles every 30 days. Second offense, regardless of time frame, the fine is doubled, etc.

Any time limit should be fair as in removing a sign, 72 hours. Painting a fence, 14 days, etc. Just be fair.

Typically a Lien can be filed for unpaid fines. This usually shakes a person up. In many states a lawyer is not required to file a Lien in Officer of the BOD can do such for less that $100.00.

In some states you cannot foreclose based on fines but is some states you can. Check this out.

In some states an offender has to be offered a BOD hearing before fines can commence.

Varies by State.
Check your local statutes to be sure.